Chapter 3

The morning after I found the wedding dress receipt, I sat in my therapy office trying to pretend I was okay.

My hands were steady. My voice was calm. But every cell in my body was screaming. Lupus had a cruel way of flaring up during stress, and today it felt like my joints had been lit from the inside. I’d doubled up on my meds and prayed they’d hold.

I didn’t want to cancel my appointments. I needed the routine. Something normal.

At 10:15 sharp, Ms. Evans walked in—early thirties, over-apologetic, always clasping and unclasping her hands like she was afraid they might betray her.

“Thank you again for fitting me in, Dr. Mills,” she said, sliding into the chair across from me. “I’ve been having these awful panic attacks... and my regular therapist’s out of town.”

I nodded, professional. Detached. “Of course. Tell me what’s been going on.”

She talked. I listened. I took notes. It was autopilot until she said the name.

“I think it’s nerves about tonight,” she confessed, cheeks pink. “There’s this book signing. Rachel Winters. I’ve admired her work for years and I don’t know why I’m freaking out, but the idea of actually meeting her makes me want to crawl out of my skin.”

My pen paused.

“Rachel Winters?” I said, careful.

“Yes!” she lit up. “She’s signing her new one at Chapters, across from Meridian Partners. My boyfriend works in that building. They’re all talking about it.”

Meridian. Nate’s office.

I forced a small smile. “That’s exciting.”

Inside, my blood turned to ice.

That night, Nate barely touched his dinner. I could feel the distance between us, thick and stifling. The space at the table felt cavernous.

“I ran into something interesting today,” I said, keeping my voice even. “Rachel Winters is in town.”

He froze for a half-second too long. Then resumed cutting his eggs.

“Oh?”

“She’s doing a signing. At the bookstore across from your office.”

He looked up. “Really? Hadn’t heard.”

I gave him nothing. Not a raised brow. Not a twitch.

“A client told me,” I said simply.

Nate nodded, like that was the end of it. But the silence that followed felt loud. My chest tightened as I searched his face—not for guilt. I’d stopped hoping for honesty. I just wanted truth, even if it was silent.

Three days passed. He didn’t mention the signing. Didn’t mention her. He just kept talking about photographers for our vow renewal and asking what shade of ivory I liked.

I didn’t believe any of it.

On Friday, the rain came down hard—fat, cold sheets that blurred the world into watercolor. I stood at the window, watching the street below disappear in mist.

Nate had left without an umbrella.

I stared at the spare one sitting by the door. I told myself it was just a kind gesture. Something small to hold us together.

But that wasn’t the truth.

I wanted to see.

I stepped out of the cab across the street from Meridian, umbrella in hand. The bookstore’s awning glowed warmly through the rain. People clustered beneath it, laughing, holding books, chatting with coffee in hand.

And there he was.

Nate.

Leaning close to her.

Rachel.

She wore a soft green coat and that loose, effortless beauty that made it hard to look away. Her hand touched his forearm. He smiled at something she said—gentle, familiar. The kind of smile I hadn’t seen in years.

The umbrella slipped from my fingers. Rain ran down my back like ice.

He touched her arm again. Lingering.

They weren’t touching like lovers, not exactly.

But they weren’t touching like exes either.

I didn’t cry.

Didn’t call out.

I stood there soaked, still, invisible—watching the man I’d built a life with look at another woman like she was the story he’d always wanted to be in.

Something inside me cracked—not a loud break. A quiet one. Like a thread finally snapping under the weight.

And just like that, I knew.

I wasn’t angry.

Not yet.

I turned, walked away without looking back, the cold rain washing everything clean.

Or maybe just revealing what had always been there.

Either way, I was done waiting for him to choose me.